Elspeth - Skill while exhausted

Elspeth stepped back, making sure to keep Jodah's body in view. She could barely stand. Jodah's spell had left her near collapse, unable to collect herself enough to cast spells or planeswalk. All she had in the moment was her sword, which she could barely lift. With uncanny quickness, Rona leaped forward, swinging her glaive at Elspeth's midsection, an attack that should have been easy to parry. But all Elspeth could do was flail her shield arm out to bat the glaive away. Rona went in for a second lunge that Elspeth barely dodged.

***

Trust, she told herself, and with that, she held up her buckler as high as she could and crouched into first guard position. Gathering every shred of strength she had left, she held it all in reserve, waiting for one more opening.

Rona gave it to her. She callously stepped forward, unleashing a flurry of swings meant more to intimidate Elspeth than land a killing blow. At the end of the display, Rona spun into a head-level thrust. Elspeth summoned her remaining vigor to block Rona's strike with her buckler, knowing that the shield wasn't any match for a direct blow. The spearpoint pierced the buckler, punching through the flesh and bone of Elspeth's forearm. Screaming through the pain, Elspeth heaved her left arm downward—fifth guard to second—wrenching the glaive free from Rona's hands and burying her sword deep into Rona's shoulder.

Both went down, Rona in a heap and Elspeth onto her knees.

***

THE BROTHERS' WAR | CHAPTER 4: THE DARK